WEBVTT - Second Cup: Stay afloat when life is overwhelming

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<v Speaker 1>Good morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tick is about how to stay afloat when life

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<v Speaker 1>is overwhelming. I recently got a letter from a listener

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<v Speaker 1>named Katie. She's a psychologist who works in private practice.

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<v Speaker 1>She writes that she's realized she has a pretty intense

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<v Speaker 1>tendency to overschedule. She's usually good about getting all the

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<v Speaker 1>things on her list done, but when life happens, such

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<v Speaker 1>as our entire family getting the flu, something that usually

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<v Speaker 1>can work just does not. I'm in that exact situation

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<v Speaker 1>right now, with about twenty one outstanding reports to write

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<v Speaker 1>and a scheduled ten hours of writing time before I

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<v Speaker 1>start billing again next week. The math doesn't work there. Basically,

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<v Speaker 1>she writes, I'm really trying to manage my time better

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<v Speaker 1>and set firmer boundaries, but Katie from two months ago

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<v Speaker 1>definitely did not. So I'm facing a seemingly insurmountable amount

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<v Speaker 1>of work to catch up on with not enough time

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<v Speaker 1>to do it. Do you have any tips or resources

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<v Speaker 1>for catching up after a time management slip up on

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<v Speaker 1>the excessively busy weeks? What are the best ways to

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<v Speaker 1>prioritize tasks that all need to be done now and

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<v Speaker 1>somehow manage life, parenting, and self care. Also, I'm sure

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people can relate to Katie's situation. Many

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<v Speaker 1>of us go through really intense times at work. Sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>this is structural think accountants during busy season. Sometimes we've

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<v Speaker 1>overcommitted in the past, and now we're stuck with these obligations.

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<v Speaker 1>When something like illness or car trouble strikes, life can

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<v Speaker 1>feel like a frantic negotiation with the clock. We've all

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<v Speaker 1>been there, so I want to share what works for

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<v Speaker 1>me when life and my workload seems overwhelming. I do

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<v Speaker 1>these five things first. Prioritize sleep and exercise. I know

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<v Speaker 1>this might sound like a luxury if you're swamped, but

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<v Speaker 1>I have found that skimping on either of these just

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<v Speaker 1>ruins me in terms of ability to focus. If I

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<v Speaker 1>try to stay up until one am to get something done,

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<v Speaker 1>it will take me three hours to do what would

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<v Speaker 1>have taken me one hour at eight am after a

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<v Speaker 1>full night's sleep. So I force myself to shut it down.

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<v Speaker 1>I aim to be in my bed for at least

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<v Speaker 1>seven hours. I also make time to run for at

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<v Speaker 1>least twenty to thirty minutes each day. I generally feel

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<v Speaker 1>better after, and when I feel better, life feels more manageable. Second,

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<v Speaker 1>I make sure I know exactly what is on my plate.

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<v Speaker 1>Unknown stuff is scarier than known stuff, So I make

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<v Speaker 1>a list of what I have going on and when

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<v Speaker 1>that stuff needs to be done. That way, I can

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<v Speaker 1>make a wise plan, one that keeps me from doing

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<v Speaker 1>stuff that's due Friday before stuff that must be done tomorrow.

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<v Speaker 1>I can also judge what must be done by me

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<v Speaker 1>and what can be passed a law. I can figure

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<v Speaker 1>out what doesn't need to be done at all, or

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<v Speaker 1>at least not before things calm down. If I've lived

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<v Speaker 1>with that broken bench in my backyard for a year,

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<v Speaker 1>I can live with it for a few more months too. Third,

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<v Speaker 1>I make sure I have enough space to have a

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<v Speaker 1>fighting shot at tackling the backlog. For listeners who don't

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<v Speaker 1>have family obligations, this is probably straightforward. You just work

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<v Speaker 1>longer hours or on the weekend. But if you need

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<v Speaker 1>to make a six pm daycare pickup every day, that's

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<v Speaker 1>a lot harder. For our listener, Katie, I asked if

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<v Speaker 1>there was any time beyond the ten hours she thought

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<v Speaker 1>she had available for writing the reports. When I've been swamped.

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<v Speaker 1>I've talked with my husband and come to an agreement

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<v Speaker 1>that he take the kids for say, four hours on

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<v Speaker 1>the weekend so I can work. Then I'd then cover

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<v Speaker 1>for him at some other point. Katie likewise told me

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<v Speaker 1>that she worked out a deal with her family. As

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<v Speaker 1>I pointed out, she spent a lot of time with

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<v Speaker 1>her kids when they were sick, so sometimes this time

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<v Speaker 1>needs to be made up. There's really no reason to

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<v Speaker 1>feel guilty about that. Fourth, I resist the urge to

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<v Speaker 1>get on top of email. First. It feels really productive

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<v Speaker 1>to delete and answer emails, but email expands to fill

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<v Speaker 1>all available space. I'm usually better off tackling the big

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<v Speaker 1>things on the list first and then getting to the

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<v Speaker 1>emails later during lower energy times than if I do

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<v Speaker 1>this the other way around. Finally, it also helps to

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<v Speaker 1>realize that busy seasons are generally temporary. Tax and auditing

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<v Speaker 1>deadlines come and go, books and podcasts get launched into

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<v Speaker 1>the world. That conference you're planning happens, and then it's over.

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<v Speaker 1>Recognizing this can be helpful for understanding that there will

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<v Speaker 1>be more time for things like getting together with friends,

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<v Speaker 1>reading books, or catching up on your favorite shows later

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<v Speaker 1>or at least between busy times if you're careful with scheduling.

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<v Speaker 1>Our listener, Katie, was learning to be more careful to

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<v Speaker 1>leave open space in her current schedule so future family

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<v Speaker 1>illnesses could be taken in stride. The good news is

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<v Speaker 1>that if you make wise time choices now going forward,

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<v Speaker 1>things will get better. That little bit of hope can

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<v Speaker 1>definitely help us stay afloat when life seems overwhelming. This

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear

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<v Speaker 1>from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four then Breakfast Pod. You can also shoot me

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<v Speaker 1>an email at Before Breakfast Podcast. At iHeartMedia dot com

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<v Speaker 1>that before breakfas us is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.